Fish lure



Feb. 20, 1951 E. A. WESTERF-ORS ,5

. FISH LURE Filed March 9, i956 INVENTOR IR/ck ALL/AR M'JTERFORS BY 14,. Q M V ATTORNEYS Patented Feb. 20, 1951 FISH LURE V Erick Alvar Westerfors, Westminster, Mass, as-

signor to Herbert A. Stuart, Indian Orchard,

Mass.

Application March 9, 1950, Serial No. 148,697

1 Claim. (c1. 43 42.5)

This invention relates to fish lures for spinning, trolling or casting.

An object of the invention is to provide a lure designed to closely simulate the shape, appearance and motion of a live swimming minnow.

Another object of the invention is to provide an artificial-fish lure which will move through the water in a manner closely simulating the erratic evasive flight of a small frightened or wounded bait fish.

A further object of the invention is to provide an inexpensive lure which will catch all types of game fish, i. e. fish that will take a hiner or a fiy.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a practical, durable and simplified lure, and yet one which will be exceedingly effective for the purpose for which it is designed.

These and other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description and from the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a front view in full scale of a lure embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a rear view;

Fig. 3 is a top edge view;

Fig. 4 is a bottom edge View;

Fig. 5 is a front end View;

Fig. 6 is a rear end view;

Fig. 7 is a cross section taken on line 1-1 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 8 is a cross section taken on line 88 of Fig. l; and

Fig. 9 is a longitudinal section on line 99 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing, the artificial-fish lure has a body portion it! and a tail portion I l with an opening i2 in the nose of the body portion for attachment to the leader of the fishing line, which leader preferably contains a conventional swivel (not shown). Tail portion H also has an opening 53 to attach a ring i i and a multipronged hook 55.

Body portion is and tail portion H are integral and of hard material such as metal, preferbrass. Markings are provided on one side of the body portion to represent scales, mouth, eye, gills, etc., of a small bait fish or minnow and tail markings on one side of the tail portion.

Minnow as used herein refers to any of variou small bait fish.

The lure has a series of bends, later to be specifically described, which gives it a generally concave side H5 and a generally convex side H. The markings mentioned are on the convex side Body portion H3 is substantially a parallelogram in shape to closely resemble the outline of a live swimming minnow. A minnow swims by undulating its body as well as using its caudal, or tail fin. The body of a minnow when in motionin the water does not have the smooth elliptical shape customarily shown by pictures. Instead body portion lii appears as shown by Fig. 2 to have a humped back 18 forming an upper corner of a parallelogram and a deep belly is forming a lower corner. A curved central body line mark 223 (Fig.1) adds to the illusion that the artificial minnow is a live, swimming one.

The new lure is given its distinctive motion wh n pulled through the water largely as a result of water flow against a series of bends in the lure now to be described.

Between the tail portion H and body portion It is a transverse bend 2! (Fig. 2) disposing the tail portion sharply bent to one side of the body portion, a is best seen in the top plan view of Fig. 3. Tail portion H is bent away from the body portion Ill laterally in the direction of the concave side [6 of the lure so that the longitudinal centerline 22 of the body portion is disposed in one plane and the longitudinal centerline 23 of tail portion 1 l is disposed in another plane which is at an angle to the plane of the body portion centerline 22.

Another transverse bend 2a is made just to the rear of opening 12 in the body portion to dispose the nose 25 of the body portion at an angle to the body portion and to the same side as the tail portion H (Fig. 3).

The body portion Ill and tail portion l l are bent lengthwise on each side of an arcuate longitudinal bend line as 26 (Fig. 2) to form the generally concave side it.

The longitudinal bend line 26 begins on the longitudinal centerline 22 of the body at the nose 25 and rises in a shallow are into the upper part of the body portion, being at its greatest distance from centerline 22 opposite the peak of the humped back I8. Bend line 26 joins the longitudinal centerline 23 of the tail portion H at the rear edge of the tail.

This rear edge of tail portion H is concavely cut with the hook ring opening l3 closely adjacent the rear edge and'on the longitudinal centerline 23 of the tail portion.

In the preferred construction of the device shown, the lure is stamped from sheet brass of about T 6" thickness and is about 1%" in length. This results in a lure which needs no extra weight for spinning or trolling. For casting rod use an extra weight on the leader may be added if desired.

The lure is lacquered to preserve it and give 3 it a shiny finish, particularly when made of brass, but luminous or silver paint may be used to provide still further attraction.

Whether the artificial-fish lure is used in trolling or pulled through the water on the line of a fly rod: orcasting; rod, water fiowvagainst-the bent nose=and tail portion tends 'to impart -a wobble motion to the lure and water flow against the longitudinally bent surfaces, over the generally concave and convex sides, tends to impart a fluttering twisting motion. These fluid forces move the artificial minnowsin anzrerraticgrapidly changing, course with a twisting-action-siniilar to the evasive maneuvering of a live, injured minnow in frantic flight. This -has;proven.to be a most attractive enticement to game fish.

The size lure shown in the full scale'view-of Fig. l is satisfactory for most game fish, but if larger :or smaller than. usualifish are;to :be:captured, the lure may be increasedsor[decreased proportionately in size without changing :the hydrodynamics involved 5 so or long :as r the bend angles and relative :positions are 'not changed.

vHaving fully described my invention, .lclaim:

:Ai'fishi-lure comprising a thin body-portion and 'a thin tail portion with the 1 longitudinal centerline of the body portionidisposed: in one p ane and that of the tail portion "disposediin another rplaneat an'angle to saidfirstplane,

longitudinalbend line extendingz'the length of the'lure 'from the nose'of'the body "portion to the rear edge of the tail portion, said bend line =beginning at the nose of the body portion on its'longitudinal centerline, arcuately rising into theupper half of the body portion and falling :in'the'rear. part of the body portion to terminate on the' longitudinal centerline of the tail portion at its rear end,"said rear end of the tail portion having a concave rear edge, and the nose of the body portion and the tail portion having openings for a leader swivel and a hook ring attachment respectively.

ERICK ALVAR, WESTERFORS.

- REFERENCES CITED Thefollowing references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number ,Name Date 1,669,350 .Sebenius May 8,1928 2,251,593 Mangle Aug. 5, 1941 

